C1a 1 Limestone

1.1 limestone
1.2 quicklime and slaked lime
1.3 cement, concrete and glass

C1a 1.1 Limestone

• Limestone consists mainly of calcium carbonate (CaCO3)
• Limestone can be used to create glass, cement and concrete
• When we heat limestone strongly, it breaks down to form quicklime or calcium
oxide (CaO). This is called thermal decomposition and it also produces carbon
dioxide:
calcium carbonate → calcium oxide + carbon dioxide
CaCO3 → CaO + CO2

C1a 1.2 Quicklime and Slaked Lime

• When we add water to quicklime we get slaked lime or calcium hydroxide, written
as Ca(OH)2
calcium oxide + water → calcium hydroxide
CaO + H2O → Ca(OH)2
• The above reaction is exothermic, as it gives out heat
• We can dissolve calcium hydroxide in water in small amounts, and after filtering it,
produce lime water. When carbon dioxide is bubbled through clear lime water, it will
turn cloudy, because calcium carbonate has formed
calcium hydroxide + carbon dioxide → calcium carbonate + water
Ca(OH)2 + CO2 → CaCO3 + H2O

C1a 1.3 Cement, Concrete and Glass

• Heating limestone with clay in a kiln produces cement
• Limestone which is heated with clay and other minerals produces Portland cement
which is ground into a fine powder. This solution is mixed with sand and water so it
can be used as a building material which will set when left for a few days
• Adding crushed rock to the mixture of cement, sand and water makes concrete
• This stone-like building material can be poured around metal rods or bars, and
allowing it to set forms reinforced concrete
• When powdered limestone is heated with sand and soda (sodium carbonate), it
forms glass

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C1a 2 Rocks and Metals
2.1 Extracting metals
2.2 Extracting iron - the blast furnace
2.3 Iron and steels
2.4 Alloys
2.5 Aluminium and titanium

C1a 2.1 Extracting Metals

• Metals are found in the Earth’s crust, and most of them are
combined with other elements, usually oxygen, so they must be
chemically separated from their compounds
• A rock containing a reasonable amount of a metal is a metal ore
• Some metals are so unreactive that they do not combine with
other elements (e.g. gold, silver, platinum) and so are found in
their native state
• The way in which we extract metals depends on its place in the
reactivity series
- A more reactive metal will displace a less reactive metal from its
compound in general
- Carbon (a non-metal) will also displace a less reactive metal
from its oxide
- We use carbon to extract metals from their ores commercially
• Many metals are found in their metal oxide form, like copper, lead
and zinc. Because carbon is more reactive than these metals, we
can use it to extract them from their ores
• When you heat the metal oxide with the carbon, the carbon
removes the oxygen to form carbon dioxide, leaving the pure
element behind:
metal oxide + carbon → metal + carbon dioxide
e.g. lead oxide + carbon → lead + carbon dioxide
2PbO + C → 2Pb + CO2
• We call the removal of oxygen this way a reduction reaction

C1a 2.2 Extracting Iron – The Blast Furnace

• Iron is the second most common ore in the crust, and iron ore contains oxygen. As
iron is less reactive than carbon, we can remove oxygen from the ore using carbon
• We extract iron using a blast furnace
• In the blast furnace, we enter three substances:
- haematite, which is the most common iron ore, containing mostly iron(III) oxide and
some sand – written as Fe2O3
- a substance made from coal which is almost pure carbon called coke
- and limestone
• Hot air is blown into the furnace, making the furnace heat up, forming carbon dioxide
as the coke reacts with the oxygen
C + O2 → CO2
• The carbon dioxide reacts with the coke a second time, forming carbon monoxide
CO2 + C → 2CO

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• The carbon monoxide reacts with the iron oxide, removing its oxygen and reducing it
to molten iron, which flows out of the bottom of the furnace
Fe2O3 + 3CO → 2Fe + 3CO2

C1a 2.3 Iron and Steels

• The iron produced by the blast furnace is only about 96% iron, and is called pig iron
• Pig iron contains carbon, but we can treat it to remove this carbon
• Removing all the carbon and other impurities makes pure iron, which is soft and
bendy, and not that useful, so to make sure it is really useful, we ensure it has tiny
amounts of other elements in it, including carbon and certain metals
• We call a metal containing other elements an alloy
• We call iron which has had other elements alloyed to it a steel
• There are many different steels, the most common of which being carbon steels,
containing from 0.03% to 1.50% carbon. Carbon steels are the cheapest steels to
make and can be used for a variety of things, including car bodies and building
• Low-alloy steels contain 1% - 5% of many other elements, and are more expensive
than carbon steels
• High-alloy steels contain between 12% and 15% of other elements, and are even
more expensive to make. An example of a high-alloy steel is chromium-nickel steel,
more commonly known as stainless steel, often used for cooking utensils and
cutlery

C1a 2.4 Alloys

• Copper is a useful metal which we have used for thousands of years
• Bronze, probably the first alloy made, is formed by alloying copper with tin – but we
can also add a range of other elements to give the bronze different properties
• More workable than bronze is brass, made by alloying copper with zinc
• Aluminium is a metal with over 300 alloys, as it can be alloyed with many elements
• If we bend (or deform) alloys and heat them, some will return to their original shape.
These shape memory alloys (or SMAs) are examples of smart alloys

C1a 2.5 Aluminium and Titanium

• Aluminium is a metal with many uses. Some of its most useful properties are that it is
a reactive metal, but it does not corrode easily
• The most common aluminium ore is named bauxite, and it is mined using open-cast
mining
• Because carbon is less reactive than aluminium, carbon will not reduce aluminium
oxide to aluminium, but instead we need to use electrolysis
• Electrolysis requires a lot of electricity. The aluminium oxide must be in liquid form,
so high temperatures are needed. During the process, aluminium forms at the
negative electrode and the oxygen forms at the positive electrode. The oxygen
reacts with the carbon electrode and lots of carbon dioxide (and some carbon
monoxide) are formed. The aluminium is released from the electrolysis cell as a
liquid

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C1a 3 Rocks and Metals
3.1 crude oil
3.2 fractional distillation
3.3 cleaner fuels

C1a 3.1 Crude Oil

• Crude oil is made of many different chemical compounds
• Crude oil contains hydrocarbons, which are compounds of carbon and hydrogen
atoms only
• Hydrocarbons which are saturated are called alkanes. Being saturated means they
have as much hydrogen in their molecules as possible
• The main alkanes are:
• The general formula for
alkane molecules is:
CnH2n+2
• This means that for every
carbon atom there is – n –
there are twice as many
hydrogen atoms plus two
more – 2n + 2

C1a 3.2 Fractional Distillation

• We can separate crude oil
using fractional distillation
• The chains of hydrocarbons
vary in size, and differently-
sized hydrocarbon chains
have different properties, as
shown in the table on the
following page
• We separate crude oil into
fractions, which are groups
of hydrocarbons with similar
properties
• Each fraction of hydrocarbon
molecules contains
hydrocarbons with similar
amounts of carbon atoms,
each of these fractions boil at different temperatures because of the number of
carbon atoms per molecule
• - Crude oil is fed into the bottom of the fractioning column as hot vapour. The tower
is kept at high temperatures at the bottom and is cooler at the top, so the column
decreases in temperature as you go up the column
- These different gases condense when they reach their boiling points, and the
different fractions are collected at different levels
- Hydrocarbons with the smallest molecules have the lowest boiling points, and are
collected at the top of the tower. At the bottom, fractions have high boiling points,
they cool to form thick liquids or solids at room temperature

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 C1a 3.3 Cleaner Fuels
• Burning hydrocarbons
releases substances
such as carbon dioxide
into the atmosphere
• Some substances
dissolve in droplets of
water and fall as acid
rain
• Carbon dioxide released
by burning fuels is a
greenhouse gas which
reduces the rate at which
energy is lost from the
surface of the Earth by
radiation
• We can use cleaner fuels
which don’t release any
or as many greenhouse
gases, e.g. gasohol

C1b 4 Products From Oil

4.1 cracking hydrocarbons
4.2 polymers
4.3 plastics

C1b 4.1 Cracking Hydrocarbons

• We can break down hydrocarbons in a process called cracking
• Cracking is normally carried out at high temperatures using a catalyst. This is known
as catalytic cracking
• Catalytic cracking takes place in a cat cracker:
- The fraction produced from crude oil is heated to form a gas
- The hydrocarbon gas is passed over a hot catalyst where thermal
decomposition takes place
- The larger molecules split apart to form smaller molecules, which are more useful

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• Here is an example of cracking:
800oC + catalyst
C10H22 C5H12 + C3H6 + C2H4
(decane) (pentane) (propene) (ethene)
• Some
hydrocarbons are
unsaturated
because they
have
carbon=carbon
double bonds.
These are called
alkenes
• The main alkenes
are shown in the
diagram to the left

C1b 4.2 Polymers

• We can make chemicals from crude oil which we use to make plastics
• Plastics are made from huge molecules, which consist of many smaller molecules
joined together. The small molecules are monomers, and the larger molecules are
called polymers
• We are able to make many different plastics which all have different properties
• Ethene (C2H4) is the
smallest unsaturated
hydrocarbon molecule,
which we can turn into
a polymer known as
poly(ethene) or
polythene
• Propene (C3H6),
another alkene can be
used to form the
polymer poly(propene)
or polypropylene
• Monomers join together when the double bonds in the alkenes ‘open up’ and are
replaced by single bonds of thousands of other molecules joining together
• This reaction is an addition reaction, and since a polymer is made, we call it
addition polymerisation
•

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 C1b 4.3 Plastics
• The atoms in polymer chains are very strong, but the size of the forces between the
molecules differs for different plastics. We call these forces between molecules
intermolecular forces, and the size of them depends on:
- the monomer used
- the conditions we choose to carry out polymerisation
• In some plastics, the intermolecular forces waken when heated, and the bonds
become strong again when cooled. Plastics which behave in this way are
thermosoftening plastics
• Poly(ethene), poly(propene) and poly(chloroethene) [or polyvinylchloride / PVC for
short] are all thermosoftening plastics
• Some bonds are made to be so strong when formed that they cannot be softened.
Plastics like this are useful for things such as kettles, and are called thermosetting
plastics

C1b 5 Vegetable Oils

5.1 extraction of plant oils
5.2 cooking with vergetable oils
5.3 everyday emulsions
5.4 What substances are added to our food?

C1b 5.1 Extraction of Plant Oils

• We can use distillation or pressing to extract vegetable oils
• Distillation involves boiling the plant and condensing the evaporated oils released
and removing water and other impurities
• All vegetable oils have chains of carbon atoms with hydrogen atoms attached
• Some vegetable oils have carbon=carbon double bonds. These are unsaturated oils
• We can test for unsaturated oils using either bromine water or iodine solution:
- Originally, bromine water is orange/yellow, but will turn colourless if it meets an
unsaturated vegetable oil
- Originally, iodine solution is red/violet, but will turn colourless also
• unsaturated oils + bromine water → colourless solution
unsaturated oils + iodine solution → colourless solution

C1b 5.2 Cooking with Vegetable Oils

• Vegetable oils are useful in cooking because:
- they have a high boiling point, and so foods can be cooked in them at very high
temperatures
- they allow food to absorb the oils, increasing their energy content
• Vegetable oils can be hardened where they are reacted with hydrogen to increase
their melting and boiling points
• To make oils harden, you must use a nickel catalyst and carry it out at around 60oC
• Oils that have been treated this way are called hydrogenated oils. Because they
are solids at room temperature, it means they can be made into spreads (e.g. butter
and margarine for bread, etc)

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 C1b 5.3 Everyday Emulsions
• Oils do not naturally dissolve or mix with water
• Oils can be used to produce emulsions which have special properties
• Emulsifiers do not dissolve oils in water, they simply mix smaller droplets of oil in
the water
• Emulsions made from vegetable oils can be used in foods such as salad dressings
and ice creams

C1b 5.4 What Substances are Added to our Foods?

• We use food additives to improve the features of our foods
• Approved European food additives are allocated E-numbers
• The different E-numbers are:
Additive Purpose Example
E1… Colours Improves the appearance of foods E150 – caramel
E2… Preserves Helps to keep the foods’ lives last E211 – sodium
longer benzoate
E3… Antioxidants Stops foods from reacting with oxygen E300 – vitamin C
E4… Emulsifiers, Helps to improve the texture of the E440 – pectin
Stabilisers and food
Thickeners
E5… Acidity Helps to control the food’s pH E501 – potassium
Regulators carbonate
E6… Flavourings Helps to improve the taste of the food E621 – sodium
glutamene
• We can detect unknown food additives using chromatography, by comparing their
chromatograms against those of substances we already know
• We can also use a mass spectrometer

C1b 6 Planet Earth

6.1 the structure of the earth
6.2 the changing world
6.3 the earth’s atmosphere in the past
6.4 the earth’s atmosphere today
6.5 the carbon cycle

C1b 6.1 The Structure of the Earth

• The Earth is made up of layers that formed
millions of years ago, when heavy material
sank to the centre of our planet, and lighter
material floated up to the top
• The crust and the uppermost part of the
mantle make up the Earth’s lithosphere

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• The crust is the outermost layer, ranging from about 6km under oceans to 35km
under continents
• The mantle, found under the crust behaves like a solid but is able to flow very slowly
• The core is made up of two parts: the outer core and the inner core. They are both
made of nickel and iron and the outer core is a liquid whilst the inner core is a solid

C1b 6.2 The Changing World

• The supercontinent Pangaea is believed to have existed until 250 million years ago
• Around 100 million years ago, Pangaea split into two vast continents: Laurasia and
Gondwanaland were formed
• 50 million years ago, and the continents as we know them today had formed, and
carried on drifting apart
• These land masses move because the lithosphere is cracked into a number of large
pieces called tectonic plates
• It is due to convection currents which push these plates over the Earth’s surface
that the plates move a few centimetres each year
• Convection currents are there because radioactive decay causes vast amounts of
energy to be produced. This heats up molten minerals in the mantle which expand.
They become less dense and rise towards the surface and are replaced by cooler
material
• When tectonic plates meet, earthquakes and volcanoes can happen

C1b 6.3 The Earth’s Atmosphere in the Past

• The early atmosphere was compressed into large amounts of carbon dioxide, water
vapour, methane and ammonia (NH3)
• When the Earth’s surface cooled below 100oC, the steam condensed to form oceans
• As the oceans absorbed the carbon dioxide, the carbon dioxide concentration in the
atmosphere fell dramatically
• 3000 million years ago, simple plant life developed and by photosynthesis
happening, the carbon dioxide concentration further dropped and oxygen produced
• In the absence of air, temperatures that were about combined with the pressure
formed fossil fuels, further reducing the carbon dioxide concentration
• Shell formations in the oceans reduced carbon dioxide levels even more
• Ammonia was removed via nitrification of bacteria (as they evolved), turning
ammonia into nitrates
• Denitrifying of bacteria turned the nitrates into nitrogen
• Oxygen and ammonia also reacted to form water vapour and nitrogen
CH4 + 2O2 → CO2 + 2H2O
4NH3 + 3O2 → 2N2 + 6H2O

C1b 6.4 The Earth’s Atmosphere Today

• The atmosphere on our planet is roughly the same as it was 200 million years ago:
- 78% nitrogen
- 21% oxygen
- 0.9% argon
- 0.04% carbon dioxide
- trace amounts of other gases

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C1b 6.5 The Carbon Cycle
• The carbon cycle shows how carbon rotates between the rocks, the oceans, and
the atmosphere
• The oceans absorb excess carbon dioxide and produce it when it is needed –
making them useful carbon dioxide ‘reservoirs’
• Plants also take in carbon dioxide during the process of photosynthesis
• Therefore, plants and the oceans play good carbon dioxide sinks
• Carbon dioxide is released back into the atmosphere when animals and plants
respire, as well as when dead animal bodies decompose

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